Fuel-agitator



A. H. CORUM. FUEL AGITATOR. APPLICATION FILED 1UNE24, 1921.

1,395,801 Patented Nov. 1, 1921 Inzqen E07 OFFICE.

ADOLIPHUS H. 001mm, or's'r. LOUIS, MIssoURi, ASSIGNOR or ONE-FOURTH T0 GUY W. Dunner, ONE-FOURTH '10 THEODORE BOYCE, AND ONE-FOURTH r0 LILBURN J. DUNLAP, ALL or ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI.

FUEL-AG-ITATOR.

' Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 1, 1921.

- Application filed June 24, 1921. Serial No. 480,100.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

'-Be it known that I, AnoLrHUs H. CORUM, a citizen of the United States, residing at the city of St. Louis, in the State of Missouri, have invented certain new and use ful Improvements in Fuel-Agitators, of which the following is a specification;

This invention is intended to alleviatethe laboriousness of the work of a locomotive fireman. The device is adapted for use equally well inthe coal-bunkers of steamships and the like. It may, also, be found useful in various other places.

The object of this invention is to shake or disturb the coal that is or becomes tightly packed and banked in the tender of a locomotive, or in a coal-bunker, or any similar situation.

In the accompanying drawings forming part of this specification, in which like numbers of reference denote like parts wherever they occur,

Figure 1 is a side elevation with part of the tender of a locomotive removed and, also, part of the cab;

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view through part of thesame', and

Fig. 3 is a sectional view, taken on the line 3-3 in Fig. 2.

The tender 1 is packed with coal. At present it is necessary for the fireman with shovel and pickax continually to bring a sufficient supply of the coal down to the floor 2 to be shoveled into the firebox 3 within the cab- 4: by muscular effort. This is very hard labor.

This device may be operated by a mechanical connection to the gratebar-shaker commonly found in locomotive engines, whereby a lever 5 is rocked alternately in two directions, the same being pivoted at 6 to a pitman 7, which is pivoted at 8 to the operating rod 90f this device, to be used when the said gratebar-shaker is idle. A lever 10 is provided and also pivoted at 8 to the rod 9, so that this device can be operated before the firing of the engine is begun. Lever 10 is normally held locked in block 11, fas

tened to the front wall 12 of tender 1. An opening 13 in wall 12 allows the reciprocating passage of rod 9.

A different arrangement of hand operation is shown in Fig. 2, in which hand-lever 14 is pivoted at 15 to floor 2 and contains a slot 16 in which rides pin 17 by which connection is made between lever 14 and link 18, which is pivoted at 19 to rod 9, whereby rod 9 is driven forward and pulled backward.

It is necessary that operating rod 9 be protected from coal jamming thereon. To accomplish this rod 9 is covered bya strong casing 20, the ends 21 and 22 of which contain bearings 23 and 24, in which rod 9 slides. quite easily.

An opening 25 exists in the lower part of casing 20, from which projects a plurality of arms 26, which are pivoted respectively at 27 by forks 28 to brackets 29 fixed to rod 9. Braces 30 support casing 20 above runway 31.

Reciprocating motion of rod 9, imparted to it either from link 18 or pitman 7 and their respective sources'of power, results in a continual stirring action by arms 26 in the coal pile. A tongue 32 on each of the brackets 29 limits the movement in one direction of each of the arms 26 to the distance of movement and position shown in full lines in Fig. 2. A plurality of tongues 33, having beveled noses 34: limits the distance of movement of the said arms 26 in the opposite direction. When the rod 9 is pushed forward, the arms 26 move to the position indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 2, but when rod 9 is pulled toward the floor 2 the arms 26 become rigid against tongues 32 and pull the coal with them that is traveling on runway 31.

The casing 20 and runway 31 will be placed in a position rather toward the bottom of tender 1 and more or less toward its front, but at an incline, as plainly shown in Figs. 1 and 2, so that its agitation will cause coal to enter the mouth 35 and to flow upon the runway 31 at a point 36 thereon adjacent to the said mouth 35 of casing 20. This movement of the coal is by gravity accelerated by the agitation of casing 20 by reason of reciprocation of rod 9.

The device as a whole is susceptible of numerous locations and arrangements, and the operating means, such as lever 14 for instance, can, if desired, be put at the opposite end of the tender from the position shown in the drawings. The device as a whole may be arranged to operate toward the opposite end of the tender if deemed preferable, or

in any other way may be arranged to operate reversely from what is shown and described herein. The device may be arranged to operate transversely of the car in case that arrai'igenient be found safer or for any other reason better. Some coal will run down the top of casing 20 and fall through passage 37 and through opening 13 upon floor 2.

Having thus described this invention, I. hereby reserve the benefit of all changes in form, arrangement, order, or use of parts, as it is evident that many minor changes may be made therein without departing from the spirit of this invention or the scope of the following claims.

1 claim:

1. The combination of a runway, braces fastened thereto and projecting therefrom, a casing borne by the said braces, the said casing having hearings in its ends, an operating rod slidable in the said bearings, and means for actuating the said rod, the said casing and operating rod being located'adjacentto the wall of a coal -bunker and there being an opening through the said wall leading to the shoveling floor. 7

2. The combination of a runway, braces fastened thereto and projecting therefrom, a casing borne by the said braces, the said casing having bearings in its ends, an operating rod slidable in the said bearings, and means for actuating the said rod, the said casing and operating rod being located adjacent to the wall of a coal bunker, there being an opening through the said wall leading to the shoveling floor, and there be ing a passage between the said casing and the said wall.

3. A device as specified including a casing the bottom of which is open, a rod reciprocally mounted in said casing and equipped with arms which extend through the opening in the bottom of the casing, and a lever connected to said rod to reciprocate the latter.

In testimony whereof I hereunto aflix my signature. V V

ADULPHUS H. CORUM. 

